Thomas Fairfax

Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron (17 January 1612-12 November 1671) was commander-in-chief of the English Parliamentarian army from 1644 to 1649 during the English Civil War, succeeding the Earl of Essex and preceding Oliver Cromwell.

Biography
Thomas Fairfax was born in Denton Hall, Yorkshire, England on 17 January 1612, the son of Ferdinando Fairfax, 2nd Lord Fairfax of Cameron, and he served in Horace Vere's expedition to the Netherlands during the Dtuch Revolt before serving under King Charles I of England during the Bishops' Wars. While he and his father served under King Charles, they were opposed to the arbitrary prerogative of the English crown and supported Parliament as "the kingdom's great and safest council." When the First English Civil War broke out in 1642, the older Lord Fairfax was given command of the Parliamentarian forces in northern England, and both father and son distinguished themselves during the campaigns in Yorkshire. In 1643, the Fairfaxes were dealt their worst defeat yet in the Battle of Seacroft Moor, but the 1644 Battle of Marston Moor saw the younger Fairfax defeat the Cavaliers despite being severely wounded. In 1644, Fairfax was given command of the New Model Army, a unified Parliamentarian army, and he led it to victory at the 1645 Battle of Naseby, after which King Charles fled to Wales. In June 1646, Fairfax captured the Royalist capital of Oxford, ending the war. Shortly before the Second English Civil War, Thomas succeeded his father as baron and as Governor of Hull, and, after winning the 1648 Siege of Colchester, he had the Royalist officers Charles Lucas and George Lisle executed for violating parole. That same year, he supported Pride's Purge, and, in 1649, he was elected MP for Cirencester. He resigned his command in favor of Oliver Cromwell that same year, and he was spared royalist retribution for ensuring that King Charles II of England's restoration in 1660 went unopposed. Fairfax died in 1671.